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Tuesday, October 21, 2008

how to make a ragged squares quilt

Last week Jeanie asked me how to make a ragged squares quilt. Several weeks ago I had also gotten a request to show the basics of assembling a quilt top, so I'll try to incorporate both of these in this tutorial. This would be a great beginner quilt, but fun for any skill level.select your fabrics: I used 13 fabrics in my quilt. (some were fat quarters and some were half yards.) 14 are shown, but I omitted one along the way.cut 30 squares of each size:3", 6" and 9".for the 3" squares I cut a few extra just to help with the randomness.take one 9" square, lay a 6" square on top, just centering it by eye, no measuring necessary,and then lay a 3" square on top of that. pin.using a 1/4" seam allowance, sew around the perimeter of the 3" squarethen sew around the perimeter of the 6" squareyou will leave the raw edges exposed.and now your squares should be attached.the center square is a little crooked, but no worries.

I think most people would cut out the back of the squares at this point to reduce bulk, but I don't bother. a bit of the polka dot showed through on the flower print in this block, but it's barely noticeable, so I just leave it as is. plus, I like the extra weight of the quilt by leaving the multiple layers in tact.attach the squares on all 30 blocks.

once your blocks are assembled,layout your blocks in a pleasing arrangement,5 blocks across and 6 blocks down.

at this point, take a digital photo and view your quilt on your camera screen to look for any color clumping. re-arrange squares if necessary.

now,using a 1/4" seam allowance, sew your blocks together to make 6 strips.press the seams in every other row to the right....and the seams in the alternating rows to the left.place 2 long strips together and line up the seams. the seams should be pointing in opposite directions. they should sort of notch together.

first pin at all the seams where they notch together, then place a pin in the middle of each block.

sew one long seam (again using 1/4")

open and press the seam to one side

at this point it doesn't matter which way you press the long seam

now you can see the bottom two rows are together.repeat the process until all rows are attached.and your quilt top is done.

this quilt is easy to quilt because it is on the smaller side and you are just doing straight line quilting...no marking required.

using a walking foot, stitch in the middle of the center (6") block, and quilt a square. back stitch a bit at the beginning and ending of the seam.

quilt another square in the largest (9") square

and quilt a little square in the smallest (3") block.

in this photo the center square is the quilting, the next line is the stitching that attached the 3" square to the 6" square. the next line is quilting, and so on.

repeat this quilting for all the blocks. so in the end you will quilt 90 squares. 30 quilted squares in the large blocks, 30 quilted squares in the middle sized blocks and 30 little quilted squares in the smallest blocks.

here it is all quilted....

but, then I washed and dried it....

and had some strings to trim....

so it looks all tidy....

and here's the back. many thanks to Frieda for sending me this fabric. it was perfect for this quilt!

and it's complete!if you have any questions, I'll try to answer them in the comments. and if you make one of these quilts, I'd love to see it!

I LOVE the pinkness of it all! I am teaching my two little girls (8yo) to sew this year. Trying to instill the love of quilting in them too. I can see that this is the PERFECT quilt to get them working on - after they finish the pillow cases and pajama pants, of course

It is so wonderful. I have to say (which I've mentioned before), even with two girls, I've never made an all pink quilt. Having recently finished one in pink and turqoise (which I now sleep with every night), I'm dying to make an all pink one. I didn't quite understand the fabulousness of pink quilts - which you make all of the time - until I made one. Now I need more.

Perfect timing! I've been stressing about how to find the time to put together a baby quilt for a friend who is due in December and totally forgot about the ease of these quilts. I have a whole bunch of bright kids flannel that should work great for this project! YEAH!!! I love when stress can become excitement :)

Love the pink. My girls would go crazy over this quilt! The new babe is going to be a boy so no pink for him :)

I have been wanting to try my hand at a quilt for a while now. I'm just getting going with my sewing. This looks like the perfect thing for me to start with. And I love that you don't have to be perfect with it (Something I worry about too much). Would I be able to do this on my little basic machine, or do you need one with the long arm to be able to do it?

um, this is awesome. i saw a "shappy chic" quilt at a shop one time and have always meant to play with the idea. this quilter used wonky-circle-shapes stacked on each other to make a...flower of sorts. one flower per square and they also appliqued some leaves nearby. it was pretty cute, but this is far more do-able time-wise.

I am not a quilter, but I do want to make my daughters matching/coordinating quilts for their beds. This looks perfect- I've done the shabby look on my baby's crib bumpers. And since I'm a beginner, this looks doable. Been lurking your blog for about a month now and have added to my reader. Thanks for the ideas!

This looks like I could do it! You are so good at matching up your fabrics. My niece asked me to make her a quilt with pink butterflies & purple flowers, but I can't seem to come up with enough "matching" fabrics. Any suggestions?

Thanks a million. I have been wanting to do a simple one and even have the fabric (some charm squares and a cream background for a simpler one), but was unsure how to tackle it. You are great and I love the pink!

Thank you, thank you for your wonderful BLOG. I can't wait to make this quilt for my sons baby quilt! I am just getting into the quilting world, and appreciate your detailed directions! It makes it do-able! Thanks again

That is gorgeous! I've been watching your blog for a little bit now and am totally inspired by your beautiful quilts. I think with the lack of 'tidyness' this quilt offers, I may just have to make one for my son. :) Thank you for the many tutorials. I also hope to make some fabric baskets . . all in due time. .Your blog is wonderful.

I'd love to know how much of each fabric you used to make this quilt. I know with 13 or 14 fabrics, you may have gotten by with a fat quarter of each but wanted to be sure. Also, can you suggest an amount you used for the backing?Are there certain fabric weights you'd avoid for this project? And, did you pre-wash and press all your fabrics to prevent shrinking? Or, do you use as is and love the bunched look any shrinking might make?I am a wannabe quilter but this looks like a great project and fun way to make my two girls matching quilts! And, a fun Christmas surprise for them too!Thanks so much for sharing your talents!

It is adorable! I love those squares on top of squares! I am always worried how much you can wash one of these quilts, but I guess I just have to try it to see... This is certainly a beauty! But so much quilting!

Thanks so much for putting this tutorial on here. I was looking at your quilts and had decided to make this one (the blue and yellow), so I'm glad you put a tutorial on here. I was thinking of just piecing the large squares together first and then stitching/quilting the smaller squares on with one shot. Do you think that would be a bad idea? Do you think it needs both stitching lines to make it more stable? Just wondering. I think I was being lazy. Anyway, I love the pink version too, and I think I'll have to make that one as well.

I used some half yard cuts and some fat quarters. I don't prewash my fabric, so it shrinks up after washing. I would stick to 100% quilting cottons for this project.for the backing fabric 1.5 yards of 44" wide fabric should work. it might be a bit tight on each side when you are basting your quilt, but you should be able to squeeze by.

you could assemble the quilt top that way, but it would get really bulky to work with. by assembling the little squares first, it allows you to move the fabric much easier.

as far as the quilting goes, if you were to omit any of the quilting, i would leave out the quilting in the center (smallest) squares. but i would recommend quilting at least 2 times in each block. it really doesn't take that long to quilt it for a baby quilt.

if I am having trouble finding enough coordinating fabrics, I usually throw a whole lot of white into the mix. that seems to be the easiest solution. otherwise you may want to look for some Kaffe Fassett fabrics. he uses a lot of pink and purple and that might be the perfect thing to tie all your fabrics together.

Thank you so much for this tutorial! I've been planning a doll quilt for my niece for Christmas but haven't chosen a pattern yet. This is so simple, I think she will get a matching one for her bed too. I love it!

I'm not sure I understand your question. what you do is layer a 9" a 6" and a 3" block. sew two continuous seam lines in squares(one on the 6" block and one on the 3" block), and that completes one block.

Sometimes I think you must be a psychic! My cousin is expecting a baby girl in December and I already have a stack of FQ's that I want to use, but I haven't found the perfect pattern yet that's QUICK and EASY. And I think you just gave it to me. I'm excited to start it now! Thanks ... as always ... : )

Thanks for the tutorial. I bought my fabric today.. I am going the pink/purple route... I can not wait to get it all cut and pieced together. Thank you for the measurements; it makes it alot easier to purchase fabric. Loving your quilts and your blog.

I love this quilt! I have a ton of baby quilts to make in the next few months and I think this would be a great pattern. Thanks for your blog & all your ideas; I love reading it each day. (I might even try it with Christmas colors for a great present!)

Thanks so much for answering my questions above in the comments - I am excited to get some fabrics picked out and try to make matching quilts for my little girls (maybe for Christmas)! Thanks again! Great tutorial and great helpful comments as well! :) Love your blog!

Do you have a tutorial for binding the quilt? And what brand/type would you recomend for the batting. I've picked out my fabric and am getting excited to finish up my current sewing project and getting started on this.Thank you!!

I love looking at your photos for the pink ragged edge quilt. I've made this quilt, and still your photos and words were wonderful..clear and precise. I'm anxious to look at all your finished quilts. Love your blog...

Thank you so much for sharing! I had to try this right away. I'm still working on it, but I have posted some pictures on my blog, if you want to drop over and have a look...And, I have to tell you - love your blog.

I love it! I was with my mom this weekend and she told me that my nieces need new blankets to carry and cover with. I told her I had seen the perfect one and would have to work on them for the girls for christmas. Thanks for sharing!!

I would make the quilt 9 x 11 for a twin size. it will be a little on the large size, but when it's washed and dried, it should shrink up to about the perfect twin size quilt. you could use 14 fabrics, but more fabrics would make it a little easier to make it random.

My quilt is finished. I washed it in the machine, but it did not turn out anything like yours. Not ragged at all. Can I wash it on higher temperature and throw in a pair of jeans?I do not have a tumble dryer, maybe that is what it needs?

I am using dark blues, light blue, light green, red, etc and the back is light blue. I am having a hard time picking a thread that won't stick out when sewing down the smaller blocks. Do you suggest the clear non cotton thread for the whole thing?? Help- I am done organizing and ready to sew and I am nervous!

Amanda, thank you so much for the great tut for this quilt and doing the binding. I just completed mine and blogged about it ( http://thejacksonmonologues.blogspot.com/2008/11/first-snow-of-season-and-some-random.html ) My squares are not quite as perfect as yours, but thankfully I like the wonky look. Thanks again for sharing it!

I finished mine! I only did a 5X5 but I think it turned out okay. I should not have used gold thread because my backstitching to secure the stitching shows up big time. Oh well, though! Got to have some mistakes somewhere! You can see it at http://daisiesnlilacs.blogspot.com/ on my Dec 8th posting. Thank you so much for being so creative and willing to share!

I LOVE this quilt! I love your whole blog and have spent hours and hours reading it. Your work is amazing and VERY inspiring! Thank you for all the great tips, tutorials and info. I'm a novice quilter and this is all so valuable.

Looking forward to reading more and participating in your next quilt-along.

Hiya!I finally posted a picture of the quilt I made using your tutorial. I added a 12 inch block to the mix to make it a little bigger and only used 1 pattern for the main blocks, but I love it. Thank you for the excellent tutorial!Here's mine:http://thehunsickers.blogspot.com/2008/12/merry-christmas-mom-dad.html

Not sure where I should comment. I found your blog a month or so ago when i was looking for ideas for a quilt for my brother. And I am loving it! Thanks for all your tutorials. Your quilts are so lovely! And I love the time estimates I've seen on some posts recently. Anyway, I don't think I've actually left a comment anywhere for you yet, but I included a link to this tutorial on my blog tonight and so I quickly wanted to at least "say hi" over here. Oh, and your "storage cubes" are on my to-do list for Jan 09. Thanks again for sharing all this. So nicely done!

Wow... I LOVE this quilt... so much so that I went out today and bought my 14 different fabrics to make it with (I went with mostly purple and a splash of blue)...

One question though... I am a little worried that some of my darker fabrics are going to bleed on the lighter ones when I wash the quilt for the first time... Is this an issue? I'm kind of scared that I will go to all this effort and then it will get ruined by the dark purple bleeding all over the white or something... eek...

I love this quilt! And I LOVE your blog! I just discovered it and I'm in the process of looking back at all your past posts. Very nice!

I'm all ready to start making this quilt. Two versions, for my twins: a pink one for my girl and a blue/seagreen one for my boy. They will use them in the their toddler beds. I'm super excited to start. It's my first time making quilts!

For the backing fabric, you suggest quilting cotton... What is your opinion on using flannel cotton for the backing fabric? And what do you think of the minkie fabric for the back? (Maybe too hard to quilt?)Thank you!

The only quilts I have made thus far have been simple squares, but I am emboldened to kick it up a notch after reading this! I'm making a quilt for a baby named Olivia - how perfect is this quilt, resembling little Os? :-D

Okay... I'm a beginner quilter, but I've been sewing for a little while. When you sew the squares on, there is no traditional hem that I see (the fabric is not tucked behind to hide fraying). Do you simply hem a quarter inch around and leave the edge of each fabric square out? Doesn't it unravel to the stitching? Or is that the idea?

Other than those questions, this quilt looks simple and fun. We can't wait to get started. Thanks for showing pictures, also. When quilters describe a procedure, they tend to use technical terms that comepletely overwhelm us beginners.

Hello! I'm about to make my first quilt ever and am looking around on the internet for hints and tips. I love your ragged squares quilt and am leaning towards this type of quilt. My dilemma: I want to incorporate my daughter's baby clothes, which obviously have been "prewashed." (My daughter is 25 now and expecting her first baby!) I read in your FAQs that you don't prewash, and I can see the benefit to that "rule." However, when I mix the baby clothes with newly purchased fabric, I anticipate some problems... Do you have any suggestions?? Thanks for your generosity in posting your instructions, photos, etc. You've taken the fear out of making my first quilt!

i think that if you mix the pre-washed fabrics with the new fabrics, it should be just fine. older fabrics fray, too, right? if you wanted to do a smaller scale (like a doll quilt or something) you could try it out that way before attempting a baby size (or larger). i hope that helps!

i'm not sure what you mean by the edges. the edges of the blocks are left raw, so they fray. the edges of the quilt are bound with a traditional quilt binding. you can check out the binding tutorial on my sidebar for instructions to finish your quilt. i hope that helps!

Wow, great tutorial!! I just finished a string quilt, and this looks like it might be inline for my second full size quilt. Thanks so much.I found your blog through CyberQuilters, I am a member there too.Tammy

Hi AmandaJean,I love your blog and your quilts! I've got my quilt sewn but am trying to quilt it (a first). I also have a few questions. Do you use a walking foot? and how do you quilt it? Do you do each square separately or do you do the sides of the squares in each row and then turn the quilt and do all the other sides of each square in each row?(hope that makes sense). Do you use a regular sewing machine? Sorry, I guess it was more than a few questions! : ) Thanks for your help!Vanessa

for quilting i used a walking foot (yes, on my regular sewing machine) and i quilted it in squares, (each square separately) so there was a lot of stopping and starting, but i really like the effect of that kind of quilting on this type of quilt. i hope that helps!

so i want to try this quilt out and had a few questions. How big is the finished product and also how much of each fabric should i get to be able to make this quilt. thanks and i will let you know how it goes.

I just finished this quilt top, I will have to get some batting before I finish it up. I used 8 fat quarters in 4 colors and a yard of a fabric that tied the colors together. One of the squares in each block is the multicolor fabric, it turned out really neat. Thanks so much for all of your tutorials, they are so helpful!

My daughter and I used this quilt as the inspiration for making her very first quilt. Fabrics are a little different since she's into horses and brown colors. The only trouble I have is the actual quilting part. My quilts tend to turn out lumpy,not smooth and flat. Any suggestions??

I am BRAND new to quilting - just had someone give me a sewing machine. It is SO very hard to sew an even quarter inch seam. The first time I tried to line up two rows of the blocks I had sewn together my husband came in and said 'are those supposed to match up?' I got mad (of course) and told him if he thought he could do better to have at it (he couldn't). :-)

I am still working on this and maybe one day I will be able to sew straight enough to have it all come together. I am so envious of people with such talent!

How big is this quilt? I am just wondering if I should make it a little bigger or a little smaller...I want a twin size quilt when I am done. Also how much fabric did you use? I have some fabric already cause I was going to make a different kind of quilt, but this one looks way more fun! I just need to know if I have enough altogether! :)

I'm making one now! Thank you SO much for the tutorial!Here's a post about mine.. http://mylifebelongstohim.blogspot.com/2010/02/quilting-project.htmlI'll come back and comment again when I've finished it and posted about it :DThanks again!!!

Thank you for this informative tutorial. I have been dying to make my first quilt, but they all seemed too hard... until I found yours. My sister is pregnant and I will make this as a present. Was so excited to do all pinks and just found out she's having a boy! Am off to the fabric store to buy some blues.

I don't know if you read all of these, but I have to say 'Thank you'. I've been wanting to learn to quilt for so long, and you just gave me the confidence to start. Everything else has looked so complicated, but you made it seem very simple to get started. I can't wait to finally make a quilt :)

I am so inspired to try this project. Have never quilted anything before, but this tutorial is so detailed and the comments give me faith that I can do this. I am wanting to make it for my daughter/guest bedroom which has a queen size bed. I know that I will almost have to double this but my concern is how to do the backing with minimal seams??? Any suggestions? I am so excited to get started, again thank you for sharing your beautiful work with us all.

ok... picked up fabric this morning, going to start working on it this afternoon. i've only made three tiny quilts before, so this is actually a good bit bigger than anything i've tried. i'm just going to start making squares, and if i'm not burned out after 30, i'm going to keep going and see if i can do all 99 for a twin quilt!

Hi, sorry if you already answered this but there are a lot of comments to read through on my phone! How did you finish the edges on this quilt? Thanks for the great information! It seeems really easy to do with your help!

This was the perfect quilt for me to accomplish in the short time I had available to me to make my daughter's first quilt!Thank you so much for the tutorial!Here is my quilt:http://housepoorhazards.blogspot.com/2011/07/all-done.html

For a baby-sized quilt, 5 by 6 blocks, do you think that 8 fabrics would be sufficient, I don't really care if there's a lot of repeats, but I'm concerned that it won't look good. This is my first quilt in case you couldn't tell lol

This is simple and beautiful, Amandajean. My son wants his own quilt (understandably- the little guy is 4 and I haven't found the "perfect" pattern- until now!) and he chose a bunch of yellows, oranges, and blues...I think those will look pretty good in this quilt! I'll post a pic when I finish it. (That could be awhile!) Thanks for all the hard work you do with this blog! I've been reading for years- constant inspiration!

I am attempting my first quilt, and am using this pattern and tutorial. I have wanted to start quilting for a while but have been too intimidated at the thought of triangles, stars, and free hand quilting. Thank you so much!!

Ive just started quilting and finished my very first and realised all the places n ways Ive gone wrong! Now I see what I should have done and am so eager to start this ragged quilt!! It looks amazing and has given me hope that mine will look like a pro has done it!!!

I just can't tell you how much I love this quilt. I look at it over and over. I am not a person who usually likes pinks, but I am seriously contemplating doing one like this. I think it's so beautiful. Thank you for sharing your creativity with us.